Grewal remarked, “Having seen its transition over the past few years, this property has become the proverbial swan. It is one of the best office buildings in downtown Sarasota offering spectacular views of the water, stunning lobby entry, quick and easy covered access from the parking garage to the building, well capitalized landlord and friendly atmosphere. All of these qualities together with the completion of the Ringling Blvd street improvements make this building a must see for any potential tenant. It is an absolute pleasure for us to be representing this building and landlord and we welcome the assignment.

May 1, 2012

[Letter from Ian Black] Garage Needed on State

I am greatly disturbed by the comments emanating from City Hall relating to the State Street Garage as reported in your recent article. I was a member of a team of professionals who had worked diligently on a proposal to build the garage and accompanying retail space for a good six months before it was unceremoniously aced without staff or public input. We had received letters of interest from tenants, including a much wanted Drug Store, to absorb the retail space prior to construction beginning, unlike the Palm Ave Garage.

If the rational for Vice Mayor Turner’s conviction “that it is not needed” is the current underutilization of the Palm Avenue garage, his reasoning bears scrutiny. Of course, the Palm Avenue facility is under-used; the ground floor has just been leased and the long awaited hotel has yet to be developed. When these two uses are up and running and on the tax rolls, it will be a different story.

The same Commissioner Shannon Snyder who is championing radical cost cutting, suggests he “would like to see what it would cost to get out of a contract.” Our city is facing a major financial crisis, so let’s spend monies to stop a project that could contribute significantly to City revenues and create jobs. At least it is consistent with removing the meters.

I concur with Mayor Suzanne Atwell and Mr. John Simon’s comments. There is no reason not to get this project moving. The timing is perfect, the economy is beginning to improve, Downtown Merchants are reporting healthy sales and, last but by no means least, we are facing a serious challenge for vibrancy from other areas.—Ian Black, responding to the “State Garage Facing Skepticism” article in the April 26 edition of SRQ Daily 

•  1,000 SF

•  Offered at $1,300 per month GROSS

•  700 SF retail showroom

•  Full glass frontage

•  Single bathroom, small office, small storage area

•  Across from Westfield Mall

•  Landlord will consider restaurant conversion with credit tenant

Contact Nick DeVito II for more information.

•  FROM $25 PSF Full Service Gross

•  Spectacular views of the Sarasota bay and skyline

•  Within walking distance to all downtown amenities

•  2,709 – 10,104 SF contiguous (many space options available)

•  Can accommodate up to 36,680 SF

•  11-story class A office tower located in the heart of Sarasota’s central business district

•  The property recently received a 1.6 million dollar renovation that provides state-of-the-art building systems and infrastructure with a contemporary design and elegant finishes.

•  Competitive build-out allowance

•  Convenient covered parking (4/1,000 parking ratio)

•  On site security and state-of- the-art security system

•  ‘Green’ practices and programs in place

Contact Jag Grewal  or Michele Fuller for more information.

•  3,700 SF

•  Offered for lease at $25 NNN (TI by negotiation)

•  Dynamite location opposite Whole Foods

•  Unparalleled opportunity to be on the ‘ground floor’ of this unique project

•  3,700 SF of prime retail / restaurant space in soon to be built mixed-use 4-story development

•  Restaurant will have two ventilated shafts and a grease trap

•  Also offered for sale at $975,000

Contact Steve Horn for more information.

•  1,896 SF

•  Offered at $1,250 per month (gross)

•  Fully air condtioned flex space

•  Reception, office, conference area, 2 restrooms,

•  12×12 roll-up door

•  20′ clear height

•  Existing racking can stay

Contact Ian Black for more information.

“We are delighted to welcome Anthony to our expanding team of experienced brokers,” said Ian Black. “His knowledge of the local market, particularly in the Lakewood Ranch area and his significant contributions to community efforts will be a strong asset to our company.”

Since moving to Sarasota from Taiwan in 2006, Anthony Homer has been active in the commercial real estate market, facilitating lease, sale and development transactions for local and national clients. Last year, Anthony completed over 24 transactions, his most memorable being the relocation for Connecticut company, ISPG, to their custom built headquarters in Lakewood Ranch.

Anthony is a Past President of the Commercial Investment Division, a current Director on the Sarasota Association of Realtors and selected as an emerging leader for the statewide organization, Florida Realtors, which also recognized him in 2009 as the Newcomer of the Year.

I recently returned from an exciting trip to Panama City, Panama.  This Central American country seems to be one of the best kept secrets and when I mention that I have visited it, people always ask “why?”

This is my third trip and each time I come back reinvigorated by their optimistic and energetic approach to life. They currently are in the process of expanding the Panama Canal, and this is a tremendous catalyst for their economy.  When finished, the canal will be able to accommodate ships holding up to 12,000 containers aboard whereas the existing canal, which will still remain in use, can only accommodate ships with up to 4,000 containers.  Currently, each ship pays $400,000 to travel through the locks and, approximately 40 ships a day will pass thru the canal (you do the math).

Accompanied with the ancillary services that go along with this type of commerce one feels the impetus of this type of economic activity.

The positive vibes seem to carry through to most aspects of commerce.  The city of Panama could best be described as a cross between Manhattan and South Beach.  Most new buildings are at least 30 stories high and the architecture is breathtaking.  There has been tremendous investment in improving the infrastructure of the city including the construction of a new subway.  By all accounts the merchants are accepting the disruption, as they believe it is to their benefit in the long term. The largest development taking place in downtown Panama City is the construction of a new Waldorf Astoria.

The pacific coastline west of the city is in the process of being opened up to resort development and a new international airport is planned for the area.  The country appears to be run like a business and this could be due to the fact that the President owns the largest super market chain and the Minister of Finance is a large developer.

In Panama they only know one way and that is forward.

I was brought back to the real world upon my return to Sarasota when my staff informed me that an angry city official had told us to take our placard down from our Tube Dude.  It’s good to be back.

Ian Black and Mark Dickson

Ian Black Real Estate welcomes Mark Dickson to the team.  Mark comes to us from Washington D.C. with a Master’s degree in real estate from Georgetown University.  His previous work experience includes assignments for the Department of the Navy as a real estate specialist where he performed lease administration functions, executed acquisitions of real property and disposed of underutilized Department of Defense real estate assets.  He has considerable research experience in both the public and private sectors.  Additionally he has served internships with a congressional committee and congressman.